I was never as taken with
“Who Framed Roger Rabbit” as many others seemed to be. I always felt it was
loud and messy. It is, but I’m not so sure that’s a flaw anymore. I don’t think
the zaniness of cartoons like Looney Tunes are necessarily successful because
of those traits, however. Robert Zemeckis seemed to think that was the essence
of cartoons in his 1988 live action/cartoon hybrid.

What I missed about the film
when I was younger was its homage to the history of both cartoons and cinema.
Just about every famous cartoon character that ever graced a screen before this
film was made is referenced in some background of this movie somewhere, but a
great deal of classic cinema is referenced as well. When I was 15, I wouldn’t
have noticed that Valiant hangs his hat on the Maltese Falcon in his office,
for instance.

The truth is this is a
fairly good gumshoe detective story. It has all the calling cards of classic
noir. The innocent man accused. The damaged hero. The femme fatale who is
nothing what she seems to be. The scene-chewing villain. It’s a good introduction
to the genre for people needing a slightly juvenile push. And, it is amazing
that Disney was able to use all those other companies’ properties. Those Looney
Tunes are the most obvious crossovers. Others might have been public domain at
that time. I don’t really know.

I suppose Warner Bros. insisted Disney release it under their Touchstone
subsidiary so their Bugs and friends didn’t appear in a movie under the Disney
moniker. However, the material is much rougher than what Disney liked to turn out
under its own logo at the time as well. Whatever the case, “Who Framed Roger
Rabbit” is a unique and significant film for the shared cartoon properties
alone. I mean when else are you going to see Donald and Daffy in a piano
battle? This is the only place.

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About Me

Andrew D. WellsAndrew is a professionally trained actor and stage director. He was a reporter for the daily newspaper The Marshall Democrat-News. He has been critiquing film since Mr. Lucas released the first of his "Star Wars" prequels in 1999. His reviews can also be seen atMarshall Democrat-News